Brisbane seeks to confront a massive, existential change Urban wins award
Let the healing begin. Or not. The tiny community of Brisbane is beginning to cope with the concept of a new existence, a makeover unprecedented in its history.
Last year, under extreme duress, the citizens of the North County hamlet, located in the shadow of San Bruno Mountain, agreed to a massive commercial/ residential development that one day will change the town forever.
At full build- out, the ambitious Baylands project, which would be designed and constructed on 660 acres of land formerly used as a landfill and railroad maintenance/storage facility. It would be larger than the current iteration of Brisbane — in other words, a sort of Brisbane 2.0.
A key rationale for voting in favor of the grand plan was a not-so-subtle threat by a chorus of politicians, many of them local, that, if the electorate didn’t cave, the consequences could (would) be even worse than the gigantic proposal out there sitting ominously on the table.
So here we are. The deal is done. The election arguments, such as they were, are history. Now it’s time to learn to adjust, goes the fresh narrative. In that spirit, a meeting (complete with a free dinner to kick things off) of interested Brisbane residents is set for Thursday at the Mission Blue Center (child care will be provided).
It has been described as “Creating Community Together.” The meal will commence at 6 p.m.; the workshop is expected to last until 8:30 p.m. A primary aim is said to be to have a “different kind of conversation” and to “share ideas about ways to strengthen our community.” Worthy goals indeed.
But there’s been a great deal of unhappy residue created by the long, unpleasant years of often bitter and rancorous debate surrounding the controversial Baylands project.
The deadline for dinner reservations is 5 p.m. Wednesday. You can RSVP at brisbaneca.org/letschat-brisbane.
Redwood City’s Hal Urban, an author and lecturer on the subject of personal character development, has won an award for his latest book, “Grandpa’s School of Life — 7 Great Lessons on Being a Good Person.”
The work has been named Book of the Year in the personal growth category by Independent Book Awards.
Urban, a former teacher at Woodside High School and the University of San Francisco, has discussed his chosen focus with audiences in 44 states and eight foreign countries over the decades.
His latest book can be obtained through his website, halurban.com, or via Amazon. He can be contacted by telephone at 650-366- 0882 as well.
That was fast!
That didn’t last long. Rich Lieberman’s Bay Area 415 Media blog is back up and running. He announced its apparent demise last month (as noted in this space), teased about his decision, and then, lo and behold, he resurrected it. If its return wasn’t just a few weeks shy of Easter, you might be tempted to shout, “Another Festivus miracle.” But we will anyway.
Stress reliever
A South San Francisco watering hole has come to the rescue of stressed out teachers. The Armstrong Brewing Co. on Grand Avenue is offering $5 beer to instructors during the month of March, Teacher Appreciation Month. Great. Let’s throw in free munchies as well. Wouldn’t want those thirsty pedagogues to slurp down quality suds on empty stomachs.